HDMI Dead on Panasonic TCP50S2 Plasma TV

Hi Sam,

Isn't this the point where you would break out your Dick Smith/Bob Parker ESR meter and check the caps on the power supplies? When things fail as you indicated - the problem got worse and then stopped working - my first suspect is failing power regulation caused by bad caps...

John :-#)#

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It may come to that. :( :) For now I've not going to do anything as the Component Video inputs will satisfy my needs, if a bit less conveniently.

And yes, that ESR meter is probably my single most useful piece of test equipment after a DMM. ;-)

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This is probably a function of the Consumer Electronics Control (CEC) line on the HDMI input, which is basically an I2C bus for passing remote-control type data around. It has its own pin on the HDMI connector. One of the commands a source can send to a display on this bus is "switch your input to me please". So at least *part* of the interface is probably working.

There is a small possibility that the high-speed data lines on each HDMI input go through some kind of fancy buffer/line receiver chip (the son of a son of an MC1489) before going to the CPU. If there is one of these chips per input, perhaps they are failing over time. It's probably more common that all three HDMI inputs go into the CPU or some other big multi-purpose chip.

Somebody (I think maybe the source, but possibly the TV) is also supposed to provide +5 V, 50 mA on the HDMI connector. For your case, where both ends have line power available, I don't think this power is actually used for anything, but if it's low (power supply fault) or getting pulled low by something (cable fault?), maybe that is detected and is causing one end or the other to be unhappy.

If all three HDMI inputs had quit working at once I'd suspect something like the cable (easy to fix) or the HDCP negotiation (hard to fix by design). This may fall into the category of grandmothers and eggs, but have you tried a different HDMI source and HDMI cable?

Matt Roberds

Yes. :)

Enough is working that the BD player does turn the TV on via the HDMI and switches the TV to that HDMI input. It's only when it goes to paly the disc that the error is produced and no video.

Thanks for responding!

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Yeah, this is sounding like bad power, it works until a larger load is added - the DVD player...

John :-#)#

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I dragged home an Acer 19" LCD monitor a few years ago (found on a busy downtown street, in front of a grocery store, no other garbage there).

I plugged it in, it worked, at least the Acer logo came on. I connected to a computer (VGA, the only other connector was DVI), and it worked. So I moved my other monitor out and put this in place. And when I left things on, the monitor would seem to reset, certainly the Acer logo appeared, and nothing I did would get the picture from the computer back.

So I opened it up and changed the obvious power supply electrolytics, none were bulging.

And it worked fine after that.

Since it worked, and then reset, I would have thought some other issue was the problem. But apparently not, so where the symptom seems to point to a solution, it's actually misdirection.

Check the FAQ, try a different cable, try a different source, try a nother monitor if you've got spares. That might give information that helps find a solution.

Michael

Don't bother poking around the power supply, the problem is definitely on t he A main board. Take a close look into all the HDMI connectors and see if there isn't a displaced pin on even one of the inputs. One displaced pin shoved up against another can wreak havoc with the whole group of inputs.

I can't get a schematic up because Panasonic's service website has been dow n for some time, but older A boards used a separate HDMI select chip, which as you would imagine, would do the selection of the wanted HDMI input and funnel it out to the main IC. These are pretty tightly packed surface moun t chips, but are replaceable. We see them fail most often in the summer, wh en lightning activity whacks these chips. It's possible yours was damaged through one port, and the chip has been limping along and finally failed.

Later Panasonics incorporated the HDMI select into the main chip directly. Since these are ball grid ICs, you're better off replacing the A board.

Before doing anything, you could try reflashing the firmware, although I've never seen this solve the problem on a Panasonic.

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Don't bother poking around the power supply, the problem is definitely on t he A main board. The A board gets it's power from several dc-dc converters on board. There are typically 1.8, 2.4, 3.3, and 5v supplies right on the A board which are fed from 12V from the power supply. If there was a probl em with the main power supply sagging, the TV would shut the smps down and give a blink code.

Take a close look into all the HDMI connectors and see if there isn't a dis placed pin on even one of the inputs. One displaced pin shoved up against another can wreak havoc with the whole group of inputs.

I can't get a schematic up because Panasonic's service website has been dow n for some time, but older A boards used a separate HDMI select chip, which as you would imagine, would do the selection of the wanted HDMI input and funnel it out to the main IC. These are pretty tightly packed surface moun t chips, but are replaceable. We see them fail most often in the summer, wh en lightning activity whacks these chips. It's possible yours was damaged through one port, and the chip has been limping along and finally failed.

Later Panasonics incorporated the HDMI select into the main chip directly. Since these are ball grid ICs, you're better off replacing the A board.

Before do> Hi:

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Don't bother poking around the power supply, the problem is definitely on t he A main board. Take a close look into all the HDMI connectors and see if there isn't a displaced pin on even one of the inputs. One displaced pin shoved up against another can wreak havoc with the whole group of inputs.

I can't get a schematic up because Panasonic's service website has been dow n for some time, but older A boards used a separate HDMI select chip, which as you would imagine, would do the selection of the wanted HDMI input and funnel it out to the main IC. These are pretty tightly packed surface moun t chips, but are replaceable. We see them fail most often in the summer, wh en lightning activity whacks these chips. It's possible yours was damaged through one port, and the chip has been limping along and finally failed.

Later Panasonics incorporated the HDMI select into the main chip directly. Since these are ball grid ICs, you're better off replacing the A board.

Before doing anything, you could try reflashing the firmware, although I've never seen this solve the problem on a Panasonic as it has for other brand s.

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So the TV shows the usual menus, etc. from the BD player, but only throws an error when you try and play a disc?

Some form of weird copy protection? Tried a known working disc?

Could the TV have had an over-the0-eir software update without yo knowing, which has broken something?

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Sam *wrote* the FAQ :-)

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Which is precisely why I put it in there.

Michael

No, the TV shows nothing through any of the HDMI ports. But the BD player displays an error once it starts to play. It continudes to play with the U72 or U73 error displayed, but nothing shows up on the screen.

What it does do it automagically turn on the TV via the VIERA link through the HDMI, so something on the HDMI is working. Just no picture.

This is with know working DVDs.

Not likely. I don't think this TV can update firmware off air. There is no Internet connection.

Thanks for your thoughts!

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:)

Too bad there isn't really anything on modern flat screen TVs in there....

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Yeah, actually a suggestion like that isn't silly. I often forget what's in the FAQs! ;-)

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=2E

It is too bad, and I couldn't figure out how to fit that in without making= =20 it sound negative. The FAQ is still great, except it's not kept up with=20 the present (or future, depending on how you look at it).

The neat thing is, LCD tv sets and monitors are so much easier to work on,= =20 at least the boards, than in the days of CRT tv sets and monitors, where=20 the main board had endless wires and you had to pull out the board in=20 order to do any work on it. An LCD monitor has two, or maybe sometimes=20 just one, board, and they are so easy to remove to work on.

Michael

But the BD player

Geez Sam, did you try another DVD player or game system? You may have a bad Blu player as well as just one HDMI port inop....

I've seem a bunch of Pannys with a single bad HDMI input.

If a firmware update is not available for it or is but doesn't fix it you need a main board.

Well maybe we'll get a new Repair Brief out of this, I remember when they were posted here. The neat things Sam would find, and then get going.

Michael